On the Edge of Reality
by Angel-Hunteress
Summary: 10Rose. Prequel to Partners in Time but you don't have to read that first. The Doctor and Rose tell each other what happened before the Doctor found a way to get back to Rose in the alternate reality. They each go through their own pain, losing loved ones
1. Prologue

**On The Edge of Reality**

A/N: Okay, people! This is the moment you've all been waiting for! The PREQUEL! As prequels go, you don't have to read Partners In Time to understand it :D (but it would be great if you did) Anyway. I hope you guys like it. This is the first non-shipper fic I've done (although, well, if you've read PIT you already know it will be…anyway.

And thank you to Isis the Sphinx for coming up with the brilliant title!

Anyway. Enjoy!

* * *

**Prologue**

_She cuddled up to him, sighing as she leaned her head on his shoulder. The bed was warm, as they had been sitting on it talking for hours._

_His hand found hers, gently squeezing it, before he kissed her on the cheek, reassuringly._

_Her long blonde hair fell down his back on the side she had her head resting on. He wrapped his arm around her waist, tightly, the warmth of her body seeping to his under the covers as they leaned against the pillows, sitting up._

"_You know," the blonde started. "You never did tell me the story of how you found me."_

"_You really want to know?" he asked._

"_Yes," she answered, looking into his brown eyes. "I want to know everything."_

"_It's not really all that interesting," he mumbled, pressing a kiss to her hair. "What about you? What were you doing all that time?"_

"_Well," she started. "I went out on a date."_

"_What!" he nearly shouted, making the blonde giggle._

"_Tell you, what, Doctor," she started. "If you tell your story, I'll tell you mine. We'll take turns."_

"_Fair enough," he said. "So, I already told you about after the Master came, how Martha and Jack left. Well, I was now on my own for a while and…"_

---

He was scrambling around the console, trying to find a way to fix the problem. Smoke was emerging from the control panel, and no matter what buttons he pressed, the turbulence wouldn't stop.

Even the hammer trick failed.

The Doctor was tossed around the console—as was anything else not nailed down already—and tumbled and tossed.

And finally, nothing.

_The calm before the storm,_ he thought bitterly, getting up.

The lights were out, and nothing seemed to be working. He fished his sonic screwdriver out of his coat pocket, turning the setting to flashlight.

He stumbled his way over to the console, reaching out to touch it. And if not for the warning of sparks erupting from it, he probably would have been regenerating right now from electrocution.

He made his way over to the doors, stroking the TARDIS in worry. "What's wrong, old girl?" he asked it.

Nothing. Not even the usual hum. She was sick.

He sighed in frustration, before pulling open the door, ready for anything that would come his way.

Well, this was something new.

He was lucky he didn't step out, or else he would fall to his dea—well, his next regeneration at least. Wow, he had been around humans too much.

About twenty stories below him was a garden, flowers beautifully in rows, vegetables growing on vines, artistically carved hedges here and there. And no one in sight.

And he was on one of them, the tall, hard green shrub keeping him and the TARDIS stable.

Oh, getting down was going to be interesting. Seeing as how he couldn't just pop in the TARDIS and get something like a _ladder_ that he needed in the dark, let alone moving the TARDIS just twenty feet down.

He looked at the shrub, deducing it was a Gylian Art Shrub. Perfect for art, moulding any way that the artist wanted. Sort of like putty.

And perfect for making foot-pockets.

He turned on his stomach, his feet dangling out of the TARDIS as he kicked the shrub hard with his foot, preparing to make a sturdy pocket for his foot, so he could be able to climb down.

But the shrub was hard, and his foot felt like it had just kicked a bowling ball. He gasped in pain, muttering a few choice words in Gallifreyan, his legs dangling against the shrub, as his grip slipped a notch, until he grabbed the wall, his knuckles turning white as he pushed himself back up.

Of course, he realised, Gylian Art Shrubs were often glazed over, hardening so other artists wouldn't be able to wreck the piece.

Just his luck.

He heard giggling from below. He looked down, but saw nothing. "Who is that, then?" he asked, still holding his foot.

A young woman stepped out from a nearby shrub, her hair up, taking off an apron that was full of green residue.

She had a wide grin on her face. She was beautiful, long auburn hair that cascaded below her shoulders, even though up. She had a wonderful smile, her round cheeks puffing a little as she did.

"I seem to be, um, well, stuck up here…do you mind?" he asked, annoyed when she started giggling again.

"Sorry, it's just…" she started. "Here, why don't I get you a ladder?"

"That _would_ be very nice," he replied, relived that the language translator still worked, at least.

She disappeared behind the other shrub again, before bringing a small-looking ladder. "Hold on a second!" she called, pressing a button on the side, the ladder rising up, stopping when she pressed the button again.

It was perfect, he mused, climbing down the steps. He turned back to her, noticing new details about her.

She seemed about early twenties, her auburn hair really a lighter red. She had very pretty eyes, violet, with one dimple on her left side as she smiled. _And she wouldn't stop giggling!_

"I'm sorry, it's just…well, I do get a lot of tourists, but you're the first one with such a… _unique_ entrance." She giggled again.

"My ship crashed," he defended. "I didn't intend to land so high."

He looked up, seeing his TARDIS perched flat on a juplo's back. A juplo was an animal much like a horse, except it had a flat back, which people could lay down on.

"Did you make all these?" he asked.

"Well," she started. "Not really. Only four are mine. The gardens are mostly mine."

"Where are we?" he asked, looking around.

The girl scoffed. "You mean you didn't come here on purpose? I am hurt."

"Sorry, I didn't mean—where are we?"

She laughed, smiling. "It's all right," she said. "I was being sarcastic. We are at the Healing Gardens, of course," she explained.

"Oh," he scanned the room, taking in the harmonious scenery. "Wait, _The_Healing Gardens? The inter_galactic_ renowned relaxing and tranquil spa, museum and all-natural clinic?"

"Intergalactic?" she laughed. "Hardly. I've only started, though many travelers have started to come by. And I am not a doctor, so it is not a clinic. But yes, all the others you have described are correct. It is a peaceful spa, and also as you have experienced, an art museum."

She giggled again.

He mulled over the world and era. "Healing Gardens…that's in the…Mearth Galaxy, right?"

"You don't know what galaxy you're in?" she asked, incredulously.

"I told you, my ship crashed," he defended.

"Yes, then, you are correct. You must be far from home."

"And the year?" he asked.

"20051. You don't even know the year? How long have you been on that ship?"

"Honestly? I have no idea," he replied.

"You obviously don't get out much," she laughed.

"You have no idea." She really didn't.

"In any case," she said, her voice businesslike. "I am Emelise Zabelle, founder of the Healing Gardens." She bowed her head, a custom of greeting.

"I'm the Doctor," he bowed his head at her, their foreheads meeting gently as custom. "Zabelle? You're not married?"

"Married?" Emelise laughed. "I'm afraid not, Doctor. Marriage is…well, let's just say it's not for me."

"Well, give it a couple years," he mumbled. "I mean, you never know."

"Are you proposing to me, Doctor?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Me? No! I was just saying…" he stumbled, trying to get past this without mentioning the whole 'time travel' thing.

"It's all right," she laughed again. "Is there anything I can assist you with, then?"

"Well…I would like to fix my ship and get it running again," he replied.

"Oh! Okay! I know just the person!" she walked him over toward the hedge she had been working on when he had landed. "Pandy!"

"Coming!" shouted another girl's voice, muffled.

After a few seconds, another girl stepped out, a smock around her waist, green shrub-mould on it, and also on her white gloves. She looked very young, a teenager, perhaps fifteen or sixteen. She had dark brown hair, pulled back into something that resembled a French braid, small square specs perched on her nose haphazardly. She was a head shorter than Emelise, and seemed like the younger version of her, only with extraordinary eyes.

Her eyes were a blue-green, bright aqua, with a violet ring surrounding them. And they were not contacts.

"Yeah?" asked the girl 'Pandy.'

"This man has a broken ship," Emelise started. "Do you think you could fix it?"

"Now, that's not really necessary," the Doctor started. "I only need a few spare parts, really—"

"Now, Doctor, you're a guest here," Emelise started. "And Pandy's a _very _good mechanic, so please. It'll be on the house."

"It's no problem," the girl explained, looking at the TARDIS fondly. "Just show me where the circuit breaker is and I'll get her started up in a minute! And I'll even fix the chameleon circuit for you."

"That's really—what?" asked the Doctor. "How'd you…?"

"Well, it's in the shape of the police box! I mean, who would build a ship in the form of a police box! _Obviously _there was something wrong with the chameleon circuit. So, what do you say?"

This girl was sharp, brilliant, even. And her eyes…well, her eyes were a mystery. He wanted to get to know her better, because the curious man he was, a mystery was just too good to pass up. Even if it was something like flower pollen got in her eyes or something.

He stuck out a hand to her. "I'm the Doctor."

She extended her hand, but dropped it, taking off the gloves first. Okay, maybe not as brilliant as he would have thought. But still, pretty smart. She removed the glove, shaking his hand firmly.

"Pandora Zabelle." She grinned at him. "Pleased to meet you, Doc."

---

"_Pandora?" asked Rose, snuggling closer to him as he continued. "Is that why you…?"_

"_Well," he grinned. "It's kinda funny. That Pandora reminded me a lot of this one. That, and it just seemed fitting."_

"_Why Pandora?" Rose asked. "I mean, what did they have the same story?"_

"_No," he said. "That world was very human, of human descent. But by then the story of Pandora's box was long gone. No, in every language, you have to remember, it's just sounds. And sometimes those sounds sound similar to what we have. Names, words…" _

"_So, you really liked her?" Rose asked, not the slightest bit jealous. She had him now, after all._

"

* * *

A/N: That's it for the prologue! I hope you guys liked it! To all my previous readers from Partners, well, don't spoil it for others! And RandomQuests giant rats will be coming soon! lol.


	2. First Meetin's and Such

**On The Edge of Reality**

Hope you all liked that last chapter! As I said, school started (today—Wednesday as I type—so I won't be able to update as quickly as you probably all would like. But don't worry! I know my priorities!

Anyway. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 1: ****First Meetin's an' Such**

Pandora turned out to be a very…unique and mysterious girl. And the Doctor liked it, and also found it a little unsettling at the same time.

After the two sisters called in a crane to lift the TARDIS down from on top of the juplo-shrub, Pandora got to work, under the Doctor's supervision, of course.

After a few seconds, he noticed what she was doing, and frowned.

"No, no. You have to cross the red wire with that yellow and black one and plug it in over _there_." He pointed the sonic screwdriver at a small socket in the wire panel, as if a laser pointer.

"No," Pandora protested, calmly, sweetly and confidently. She plugged it into the socket she had been going to initially.

Power and light flooded the TARDIS, and once again he heard her gentle hum. To say he was impressed was an understatement. No one in years had corrected him when it came to mechanics of his own ship.

"That's your energy conversion catalyser plug," Pandora explained, wheeling herself out of the wire panel. "You put those wires in there you get a power overload. That's probably why it short-circuited in the first place."

"So, what, you're like the mechanic and the artist around here?" the Doctor asked, watching with wonder as she dusted her hands off.

"Sort of," Pandora replied, shrugging. "I just…well, for engines, it just feels like they talk to me sometimes. You know, you just know when something's wrong and when it doesn't want to work as hard and when ya gotta go easy on her."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," he told her. He did; often the TARDIS would send him her feelings, telepathically. Sometimes telling him she needed to just take a break, or that she didn't like a passenger, or just telling him he was being very annoying.

"Not like yours, though," Pandora replied. "I mean, she's a real beauty, but she ain't that easy to be read. You really have to work hard to keep her happy and running. Kinda like a woman when you think about it."

He smiled, knowing exactly what she meant. How many hours (_years_!) had he spent working on the TARDIS?

She walked over to another wire panel and knelt down by it, unscrewing it with a sonic screwdriver of her own—mind you, not as sophisticated as _his_, he thought, but still it was sonic—her gaze fixed on the panel, until it came off. She turned to him, grinning and proud.

He had offered her to use his, but she insisted she used her own, because it was, as she said, hers. Besides, it gave her more of a challenge.

"So, what do you do, then?" she asked, once again ducking her whole upper body into the wire panel. "Besides travel, I mean."

"Well…nothing else, really. I dunno, sometimes things find me, you know? Sometimes bad things, sometimes good things. Not that I mind, though. And, I dunno, I just…help people I guess."

"Yeah?" she asked, as she clicked two wires together. Sparks flew and she gasped in pain. He was going to ask her if she was all right, when Pandy continued. "So, can I ask what mission you're on?"

"Mission?"

"Oh, right," he could practically _hear_ her rolling her eyes in the tone she spoke. "I forgot you guys are all like…'shh, it's a secret' and all that loks." Jazz, at least the equivalent of in this culture.

"What?" he asked, puzzled.

"We get you guys all the time. Not telling us what they're doing, who they are, just popping in and out of here all the time. So secretive."

"Who?" he asked.

She rolled her eyes. "Time Agents!"

Of course, now it clicked in. She wasn't as brilliant as he had thought (maybe); she was just used to Time Agents. Though she still was one hell of a mechanic. And artist.

"Oh, I'm not—well, actually I _was_ at one time—long story—but I'm not a Time Agent."

"Oh," she frowned, sighing in frustration at her own rudeness. "Sorry, then. My mis. Hope I wasn't too rude."

"No, that's fine. You're not ginger," he grinned.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"Inside joke," he replied, putting a hand behind the back of his head.

"Ah," she said, continuing to mess with the wires. "So, what are you then? I mean, are you a time traveller?"

"Well…"

"I mean, it's obvious you are. Don't worry, I won't ask you to take me to like 15670 or anything. And I won't tell if that's what you're worried about." She smiled, the smile evident in her voice. "So, what are you then? You know, travelling around. Or is that just it?"

"Pretty much." he said. "What about you? Do you work here or are you in charge?"

"Nah. I do everything for free and for fun," she said. "I mean, I just…help people, I guess."

He grinned. "So what got you and your sister started then?" he asked her.

"Well," she said, with a little bit of stress as she pulled two wires together. "We lost our parents when we were little. The community took us in until Emelise was old enough to live out on her own, with me. We wanted to do something to help the community, give something back to them, you know? And, well, they were always so stressed from work and all, they never got a vacation. We figured that's what they needed; a vacation. But there ain't a place to go on vacation because everywhere is just work and homes. So, we opened this place. My sister always had a knack for gardening, and she's a good businesswoman, and I just paint and help people. You on vacation, Doc?"

"Not really," the Doctor said. "Sort of…just crashed here, really. And when I _do_ go on vacation things always have a habit of finding me. Tell you, I had a friend once who whenever we went to on vacation, we'd end up either having to run back here and escape or having to save the world from an evil thing. I always used to tell her she was jeopardy friendl—" he stopped, realizing who he was talking about.

Rose.

It was still hard, the loss of her. Where was she, now? He wondered. Was she still in Torchwood, taking the slow path in life? Was she married? Did she have kids? Grandkids? But the real question was: did she ever move on?

He didn't; he continued living the same life he had always lived, filled with adventure and near-death experiences, but there was a large part that was empty. The laughter, the easiness, the inside jokes, the flirting. _Her._

"So," he started, much more lighter, dropping the subject. "You familiar with Time Agents, then?"

She smiled. "More than a little."

He noticed she didn't say much after that. He recognized the 'fond hating' of Time Agents. Perhaps she had a brother or a sister or a close relative in the Agency.

"So, you want your chameleon circuit fixed, then?" she asked, pointing her old-fashioned sonic screwdriver at a small box.

"Nah," he replied. "I like it the way it is."

"Really?" she grinned. "And you wonder why the things find you! You stick out like a sore thumb! And look at those! Trainers with the suit?"

"I happen to _like _them, thank you very much." He mocked-anger at her.

"Different strokes, I guess, right?" she shrugged.

"Sly in the Family Stone?"

"Who in the what?" she asked.

"1970s…never mind," he sighed, a little frustrated. "So, all set then?"

"Yep," Pandora replied. "Should be all set. Your ship needs a little time to recalibrate, but it'll only be a few hours. After that you'll be ready to go!"

"Thank you, so much!" he grinned. "You know, you're good." Only a few wires were misplaced, some frying in the process. He could have been able to do it himself, but…a fifteen-year-old two-hundred-and-first century human girl doing all that? He was very impressed. And she even corrected him.

"Well, you did help, you know, showing me where all the stuff was," she shrugged. "I guess we make a good team!"

He grinned, walking toward the TARDIS doors, extending his arm which she took, linking hers with his.

"So," she continued. "Can I interest you in a relaxing scent-treat? Tour of the gardens…I dunno. You seem like you would like a vacation."

"Nah, I…you've done too much already." he said. He didn't know whether he liked her or not; his mind was still wrapped around the fact how she had corrected him.

"Okay. If you're sure," she smiled at him again. "If you want you can stay here a spell. Folks out there have never really seen an alien. Time Agents always just come in here. First time an Agent came they got very upset till the government ruled it all hoax. So, feel free to roam the gardens, use anything you want."

"Kay. Thanks," he replied. Sort of like Earth, he mused.

"Anyway. I'm off to finish my grips—" dog "so, then see you!"

She skipped off, quite literally, back to the shrub where she had emerged from initially.

He wandered the gardens, admiring all the different plants. After about a half-hour, he sat on the ledge of a fountain, lost in thought. It was pretty relaxing here, he thought.

"Enjoying the scenery?" Emelise sat next to him, smiling.

"Yeah," he replied. "Quite a lovely place. Love the gardens. Fantastic art."

"Yeah," Emelise replied, smiling, then nodding toward the direction Pandora was. "Quite the artist, ain't she? She loves to sculpt animals."

"Yeah, they're very beautiful. She's a very brilliant girl. Smarter than most fifteen year olds, I'd say."

Emelise didn't smile. "She went to the Academy when she was thirteen."

"The Academy?"

"It's a school for the gifted," she explained. "She went there, but she hated it. When we were raised by the village they thought it would be a good idea for her to be in place that was intellectually challenging. But it wasn't what she wanted."

"What did she want?"

"To have fun. To do everything without anyone telling her to, or how to do it. Everything she's done for us and for the community are all volunteer. She doesn't want to be hired. I've tried to even give her some kind of money, to show her the importance of a coin for when she's living on her own, but she wants no part of it. She despises money."

"Same here." He thought back to all those times he had to rig the ATM machines with his sonic screwdriver on Earth. He missed Gallifrey; they had no money. Everything they did was for the better of the people.

"I don't know what to do with her sometimes! I'm the only one to take care of her, but when I'm gone I'm afraid she's going to live out on the street. And even when I'm still around she has no incentive, at least none that I can give her. She just wants to do everything on her own, you know?"

"I'll tell you what, she's very smart. Perhaps she'd make a great leader someday. Regardless of pay. A true people person." He grinned.

Emelise sighed. "I don't know. Sometimes—wait, why am I complaining to you? You must think I whine too much."

"It's fine," the Doctor replied. "It's not good to keep your emotions bottled up for such a long time. Besides, I do know how sisters can be sometimes."

She smiled. "Well, would you like anything? I was just going to go inside and make a nice cuppa—"

She stopped, her sentence interrupted because at that moment the whole Gardens shook, violently. Nothing was damaged or fell over, since it was all nailed down tight.

Still, the Doctor was thrown off the fountain, as was Emelise, knocking her head hard onto the ground. Pandora was thrown back a good five feet, her materials propelling through the air, now dangerous projectiles.

And then finally the earthquake stopped. Everything seemed calm.

"What was that?" the Doctor asked Emelise, standing up. But it was apparent that she didn't know.

"I…I don't know. We've never had anything happen like that before," she replied. She turned quickly to the gardens, searching. "Pandora!"

"Right here!" called Pandora's muffled voice. She got up, walking over toward them. smiling. "Perfect ten on the scale."

"I know," Emelise smiled back, relief evident in her voice. She turned back toward the Doctor. "I guess we better go and see, then."

She headed toward the door of the Gardens, starting to open it. "No, no, Pandy, you stay here."

"I wanna see, though!" Pandora protested. "You never let me—"

"You're too young—" started Emelise, as Pandora was mouthing it sarcastically with her. "Don't give me that."

"Come on," Pandora again protested. "It's not like it's the end of the world, Emmy. Besides, if it's a problem, it'd be better with more people. If one of us goes we're in it together."

"That's the spirit!" the Doctor grinned. "Come on."

"All right, fine!" Emelise threw her hands in the air.

They unlocked the door to the gardens, stepping out into an open street, into the unknown, arm in arm.

Another adventure, perhaps.

* * *

A/N: Ok, that wasn't the best chapter. So what? At least we learned about the other new characters, right? Okay. So, let's see where this leads! 


	3. Secret Window, Secret Garden

**On The Edge of Reality**

Yeah it's been a while since I updated. Sorry! But school kinda takes precedence and all. So yeah. I missed you guys:D

Also, sorry for the chess references. But I was watching House last night…

Anyway. Enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter 2: ****Secret Garden, Secret Window**

"_They reminded me of your lot," he said, smiling affectionately at her. "Going mad, they were. First sign of public encounter on that planet."_

"_Hold on," Rose started. "You said they came from humans? Earth-humans?"_

"_Well, yes. But over the course of time, as the colonies settled down, they closed off space travel, actually setting themselves back by a couple hundred years. They didn't record much anything for a while, built their own governments, their own languages. I never found out why."_

"_Maybe you will someday," Rose said, smiling at him._

"We_ will someday," he corrected, pressing a light kiss to her hair. "One thing they did keep, though, I was actually a little surprised about. But, as it was my luck, of course it would be that day."_

"_What day?"_

_He lightly pressed a finger to her lips, his tone half-patronizing.. "All in time, my dear. Now, can I continue?"_

_----- _

The street was filled with people screaming. For a minute, the Doctor wondered if they had just stepped into the Godzilla movie.

People were panicking, the water-powered motor-cars now an electrical death-trap as the live street wires hit them. Many were rushing to a safe building—not just their homes, but just any shelter they could find.

The Doctor grabbed a man running past by the sleeve of his shirt. He seemed a little more calm than the other townsfolk, though only relatively.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked.

"I-it's an a-a-alien!!" the man screamed, pulling free from the Doctor and continuing to run to the closest building, a local pub.

The Doctor and Pandy exchanged looks, rolling their eyes.

Aliens. Ha.

They had no idea.

As the Doctor and his two new friends headed down the street, jogging against the panicking people, they saw the source of their problems.

"Oh." started the Doctor.

"My." –Pandy.

"Goddess." –Emelise.

The creature responsible for wreaking havoc was a giant over fifteen feet tall, bulky and muscular, with long green arms, the shoulder bones seemingly protruding from the skin. It held a person in its hand, swinging the man around and throwing him.

Okay, maybe not Godzilla. King Kong.

Or Grawp.

Emelise tugged at Pandora's shirt sleeve. "Perhaps you should go inside a house—"

Pandy rolled her eyes. "I'm fine, _Mother._ Honestly."

The Doctor eyed Emelise; he liked Pandora and her adventurous spirit—it was Emelise he was worried about bringing them down. He didn't like to bring any kind of parents onboard. "You'd rather wait inside, yourself?"

"No," Emelise replied, the adventurous streak hidden behind her eyes, as if a small spark. The Doctor caught it. "A giant alien is attacking my town. It wouldn't do much good to sit around and wait for somebody else to get rid of it. Besides, I do need the exercise."

"All right then!" the Doctor grinned, then in a more serious tone, he continued. "Walk slowly. No sudden movements."

They edged slowly toward the creature, cautiously. A large motor-bus filled with passengers sped past quickly, hoping to avoid the giant.

They didn't quite make it past the giant.

The giant caught the motor-bus by putting its arm out, the top of the motor-bus getting crushed as it hit the arm, looking like an accordion. Of course, there were still very many passengers in the back, now shrieking.

"Oh, my Goddess," whispered Emelise, staring at the scene.

Pandy ran up a few feet, bending down to pick something up. A large rock. She moved her arm back to throw it, but Emelise stopped her.

"Pandora, don't! You could make it drop the bus!" her sister scolded.

"She's right," the Doctor agreed, eyeing the giant. "You don't know how it will react."

They watched as the giant slowly guided the bus through the air, as if a child playing with a toy car, making it fly.

"We need a plan, and fast," Emelise said. "We need to trap that giant somehow."

The Doctor glanced at Emelise, relieved.

"What?" Emelise asked.

"It's just a lot of your kind are always quick to kill."

"Well, I doubt wreaking havoc on an entire city just for the fun of it is really this thing's intention," Emelise argued. "It could all just be a misunderstanding."

"Or the giant's just really pissed off," Pandora chimed in, still looking around.

"Either way," Emelise glared at her younger sister. "We have to at least try. I've had enough of the 'shoot first, ask questions later' mentality."

"So, what do you suggest we do then?" Pandora asked.

"Do you have anything big enough to trap it in in this village?" the Doctor asked. "A freezer, a safe…anything unbreakable?"

"Nothing _that_ big," Pandora replied. "Remember it's just a small little town. Unless…"

"What?"

"I got it! Yes!" she grinned, similar to the Doctor when he got an idea. She hugged the Doctor. "You're a genius!"

"So I've heard," the Doctor grinned.

"We don't have anything to _trap_ it in, per say, but…Doc, Em, just…distract it or something. I'll be right back!" She turned and ran back toward the gardens, sprinting.

Turning back, they noticed that the giant had spotted them. Bus in one hand, the giant lunged at them with his other, the ginormous hand twice the size of both put together.

The Doctor grabbed Emelise's hand, running with her out of range, the hand closing merely a few feet behind them.

The giant was now mad, aggravated that the new toys were running from it. Clutching the bus in his hand, on the side, he walked toward them, slowly with each step, a big and lumbering mass.

The Doctor wondered frantically of their next step; he had, after all, many encounters with giants. Very many much more life-threatening than this.

Still…no matter how he looked at it, the ending was either a stalemate—running to escape the giant until one of the three tired out—or a checkmate.

And he had yet to be beaten in chess.

He couldn't find safety in the buildings; there were people in there. He'd lead the giant right to them.

He could make a run for the forest, use the sonic screwdriver to make a tree fall on the giant, however, perhaps rendering it unconscious…now, there was a thought.

He had a plan forming, of a way to trap it. First he had to lead the giant outside the village, away from the people.

After they entered the forest, the giant merely metres away, he heard a rather loud engine start up behind them.

"Duck!" he heard Pandora yell, and instinctively that's exactly what he did.

Crouching down, he turned toward the direction Pandora was, seeing her with a long, vacuum cleaner-like machine strapped to her back. The spout was wide, the end of it probably three metres in diameter.

She looked like one of the Ghostbusters.

She flipped a switch and green goop shot out from it, hitting the giant. It covered his legs, first, then slowly went up, covering much of the giant.

It was a Gylean-Art Shrub. In the machine. The scraps of the artist's work, the leftovers, stuffed inside of that can. It was a neat little invention, storing all of the shrub-stuff. Of course, if there was no glaze inside mixed with it, because then it would harden almost immediately. Which, if Pandora was as smart as he wanted to give her credit for, there was now.

Shrub-In-A-Can. And Pandora probably just invented that.

The giant dropped the bus in surprise, and as it fell, Pandora sprayed the ground, making a neat little temporary cushion for the bus to land on. The bus impacted on the still-soft shrub, the glaze hardening around the wheels and the bottom of the door.

Pandora returned back toward the giant, and watched as the glaze hardened around it. The giant tried taking a step forward, but fell, seeming to be knocked unconscious.

The giant, immobilized, was not the top priority any more, rather, the bus was. People were scurrying to get out, though the door was jammed.

However, the Doctor quickly took care of that with his sonic screwdriver.

One by one the people started to run out, some carrying injured passengers and quickly running to the village. Others thanked the three, even tried paying them—which they politely declined—and most others just ran, putting themselves first.

The Doctor, Emelise and Pandora turned back to the giant, watching it with fascination, fear, and sheer curiosity.

Everything up to the giant's hideous shoulders were covered in hard shrub. The Doctor rapped on the shrub-covered-leg, barely a sound. Like tapping on concrete.

Vaguely, he wondered why the giant wasn't moving.

But that wasn't his top concern. Now, it was what the giant was. It was unlike most other giant-species he had come across.

He studied the body of it, looking at the shape of the feet and the legs, ruling out the species it wasn't and trying to figure out which ones it possibly could be.

Emelise caught the Doctor's arm, pointing to something on the giant's face. He walked toward it, wondering why she looked so alarmed.

"What's that?" she asked, as the Doctor followed her gaze.

A cut, but not bleeding. Rather than blood oozing from the deep cut, a wire protruded from the wound, spark emitting from it.

The Doctor approached it, taking in the other details he noticed, now that he was closer to it.

Like why it wasn't a species he had ever heard of. It wasn't part of one.

Like why it stopped moving. The porcelain face had broken in the fall.

He swore under his breath in Gallifreyan.

"What is it?" Emelise asked.

"Something much bigger is going to come," the Doctor replied. "This is only the pawn in chess."

"Well, we'll just have to find a strategy for a checkmate, now, won't we?" Pandora asked him, making the Doctor look at her curiously.

She shrugged. "I played a couple games with the Agents. What?"

He shook his head, turning back to the robot. "Robots…robots…tell me, what day is it?"

"25 of December, why?" Emelise asked.

"You're kidding me! It's Christmas? Oh that's just…why Christmas? Why robots? Why robots on Christmas? It's like they never have anything better to do. 'Let's go find the Doctor on Christmas!' I'm surprised this one didn't have a Santa outfit."

Emelise and Pandora exchanged glances, regarding the Doctor as if he were crazy.

Not crazy. Just eccentric.

"Okay. You guys wanna go inside? I'll be a while. I wanna examine this." the Doctor said, sitting down by the cut.

"I'll help," Pandora said, sitting next to him. "It'll be better to get a second opinion. Emelise, wanna make us a cuppa?"

"First you're taking that thing inside," Emelise said, looking at the two, who were now looking up at her, curiously. "I don't want to cause a stir from the village, no more than necessary. You do your work in the gardens."

"All right," the Pandy got up, looking at the situation. "How will we carry it in?"

"Crane." the Doctor replied, referring to the crane that they had used to get the TARDIS down.

------

After a few hours of examining, the Doctor finally found what he was looking for.

"Yes! Here it is!" he held up a small mechanical part, about the size of two hands width-wise.

"What is it?"

"Transmitter beacon. Someone out there was using this to control this little beauty here. This town isn't full of huon particles, is it? That _would_ explain why the TARDIS landed here…tell me, have you had a cup of tea every day for the last six months?"

"What?!" Pandora asked, completely taken aback.

"Never mind," he said, quickly.

"Doctor," Pandora started. "What does this all mean?"

He sighed, looking up at them. "It means this little adventure is not over yet."

---

"_Wow." Rose smiled, lightly teasing the Doctor. "It's always something with you on Christmas, you know. Living dead, dying, _brides,_ and now giants. I hope this isn't how you plan to spend this Christmas. So jeopardy-friendly you are."_

_The Doctor feigned defence. "Me, jeopardy-friendly? I think it was _you_ who brought Adam onboard?"_

_Rose grinned. "I also brought Captain Jack, too."_

"_Well, that was actually me that brought him onboard—" he was cut off by her pressing her lips to his, kissing him._

_She pulled back, grinning cheekily. "You were saying?"_

"_Right, yes, Pandora's Box."_

_He watched her grin, smiling back at her himself. "You know," he started. "You have yet to tell me of _your_ time. I want to hear all of your Torchwood stories. __A__nd what was that I heard about someone going out on a date?"_

"_But you're not done with your first adventure," she protested. "Besides, yours are much more interesting. And…can I just ask you one more thing?"_

"_Anything."_

"_Just how long did it take you?" she asked._

_He didn't respond, his eyes darkening. _

* * *

A/N: How did y'all like that so far? I'm rereading it and it looks like I had some Firefly influence in there, in that last and chapter. Anyway. I've been sick all day so I was like 'why don't I write this?' And guess what: My English teacher has this little workshop of Fridays for creative writing. Anything we want. And she loves fanfics! So I'm going to be updating this more than I thought:D

I miss you guys. I had so much fun with PIT. Anyway. Review!


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